… Kiffin and his staff of relentless recruiters had two months to scramble and assemble a class, and they were praised for compiling a crop that was strengthened with the late additions of safety Janzen Jackson, all-purpose back David Oku and tailback Bryce Brown, the nation’s No. 1 prospect. Rivals.com ranked Tennessee’s 23 signees 10th in the country, but only eight from that class are still with the program following a string of arrests and academic shortcomings.

… Unless they want to be the first to have an awkward meeting with SEC commissioner Mike Slive, schools who have prospective players announcing their decisions on National Signing Day simply have to leave at least one of their 25 spots open. There are always backup plans, of course, but the pressure has increased for those kinds of fringe players to get their signature into a school before their spot is gone.

Tennessee could very well face this kind of situation. The Vols currently have 21 commitments — 22 when you count Tino Thomas, a grayshirt from last year who has already enrolled in classes — and a number of targets who may or may not help them fill out their class to its maximum capacity.

Wide receivers Cordarrelle Patterson (Hutchinson (Kan.) Community College) and Quinshad Davis (Gaffney, S.C.) both have UT in their final group of schools. Defensive tackle Korren Kirven (Lynchburg, Va.) will decide between UT and Virginia Tech. Marshall commitment Amos Leggett, a four-star cornerback from Miami, was a surprise visitor on campus this weekend. Miami commitment Jacoby Briscoe (Lafayette, La.) is still being courted by UT coaches.

Sure, if UT somehow gets all of the above to sign with it, there’s a problem, one that would have to be remedied by rescinding a longtime commitment’s offer at the last second — an absolute public relations nightmare.

But you can also say there’s a problem if UT doesn’t get at least three players from that group, considering that six players have de-committed from the Vols throughout the recruiting process, the majority of whom were directly or indirectly told to look elsewhere because of a potential numbers crunch.

I don’t think Dooley cares one bit about a PR nightmare at this point. (He’s a Saban disciple, don’t forget.) So I vote for falling short. I think that’ll go over like a dream in light of him having run other commitments off.

I know this post is primarily about UT but it also puts the spotlight on how poorly the recruiting process is handled. Those advocating an early signing period should be applauded. Signing a portion of the class before HS football starts allows players and coaches to know where they each stand, reducing costs, and stress.

When recruiting resumes in December, I feel another, smaller group, should be allowed to sign leaving a manageable number that wants to “play the hat game” and wait until the last day to show out. If anyone should be left out of a scholly when the music stops, it is some of these showboats who should get the shaft.

On the subject of graffiti, my Mother used to say, “Fool’s names like monkey’s faces, always seen in public places.” I have no idea what that means, nor have I ever seen a lower primate out and about in public, but take it for what it’s worth.

In other news, I don’t know how to fix the signing process, but something really should be done. Macallan’s early signing period is a great idea. The thing that I really don’t like is the fact that a kid can hang on all the way until Signing Day so that he can get his “pick the hat” moment on national television and end up really screwing over some of the schools vying for his services. Indeed, if Tennessee does land all of their last minute recruits, they could have a problem finding slots for them. I remember the situation a few years ago where Georgia thought they were full and instead had a kid swap commitments at the last minute, and a kid that wanted to be at Georgia ended up sending his signature to Florida like, half an hour too late for us to take him when we figured out we had space. That sucks. I understand why the SEC capped classes at 25, and it’s good that they’re taking on the oversigning problem. But there’s got to be a way to fix the process so it works for everyone involved, athletes AND schools.

UGA ___ then why are you reading football blogs in January? Blogs for other teams. It’s obvious you feel bad about what has happened to your team in Knoxville and that’s understandable. The initial writing is from the TimesFreePress, so it’s the media that’s bringing this up. No one is “hatin'” on your poor sad pathetic little program. We view it as the ghastly train wreck that it has become and can’t look away from. If you want to put down people for talking about college football, then I suggest you get off these web sites and stop going to or watching these games. Leave the entertainment to those that appreciate it for what it’s worth. You don’t need to grace us with your “better than everyone” attitude. It will Truly be our loss. Your judgement is both hypocritical and sad.

Tenn can roll in their pile they have created through headlining and grandstanding for the last few years. The only problem I can foresee is if we lose to them in the near future. Can’t tell you how amped I get when considering that a rival’s troops are down in quality and how we can put some dings on their heads to make up (partially) for the Kiffen win and the last second comeback. We need to smoke their ass while we got’em at any disadvantage. If the situation was reversed, do you think they would be wringing their hands at our plight? Didn’t think so.